c/cable-installers

Finally switched from fiberglass to aluminum rods for duct fishing and wish I did it sooner

I was one of those guys who swore by the cheap fiberglass rods, you know, the $20 ones from Home Depot. Last month on a job in an old office building in Denver, my fiberglass rod snapped on a 60-foot run behind a drop ceiling. A buddy let me borrow his aluminum glow rod set (the 6-piece, 40-foot kit) and I got the job done in half the time. The aluminum ones are way stiffer and I could actually push through fire caulk without bending. Has anyone else made the switch and found it worth the extra money?

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lisa_jones21•7h ago

Rattled through 200 feet of cable in a crawlspace in Phoenix last August and the heat made me question everything

Had to terminate 48 drops on a new construction job and the customer kept asking why we couldn't just run everything through one hole like it's a magic trick, has anyone else dealt with builders who think we're just pulling string?

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margaretf40•11h ago

Remember when we had to tone every single drop by hand?

I started installing cable in 2003, back when we carried around those old tone generators and probes that weighed a ton. Every job, no matter how simple, meant crawling through attics and basements to physically trace lines with a wand. Now I just clip on a fancy digital toner and it finds the line in seconds from the pedestal. The change really hit me around 2010 when my company switched to the new Fluke models with the signal strength display. I still catch myself reaching for that old probe sometimes, but I can't argue with saving 20 minutes per job. Anybody else miss the simplicity of the old gear, or am I just getting old?

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the_anna•2d ago

That culvert job on Elm Street took me 5 hours for a 30 minute run

I got called to run a new line under a driveway for a customer in a older neighborhood. The ground was pure clay and rocks, and my trencher kept hitting these buried field stones nobody marked. I ended up having to hand dig the last 12 feet because the machine just couldn't cut it. Took me from 9 AM until almost 2 PM to get maybe 30 feet of conduit in the ground. Has anyone else dealt with unmarked debris that just completely kills your schedule?

c/cable-installers

Finally switched from fiberglass to aluminum rods for duct fishing and wish I did it sooner

Rattled through 200 feet of cable in a crawlspace in Phoenix last August and the heat made me question everything

Remember when we had to tone every single drop by hand?

That culvert job on Elm Street took me 5 hours for a 30 minute run

Hit 500 same-day installs last week and it got me thinking

PSA: The trick with cable pulling lube on a hot day in Austin

An old farmer taught me something about running cable back in 2003

Spent $40 on a Klein coax stripper and it trashed 3 connectors before I figured out the tension screw was loose

That time I found a stud with a butter knife in a pinch last Tuesday in an old house near downtown

Shoutout to that time I chose a fish tape over a glow rod in a tight crawlspace

Growing skeptical of those 'no-residential' policies some ISPs push

TIL running cat6 over drop ceiling grid instead of through it saves hours

The customer who taught me about cable burial depth

Shoutout to the old timer who told me to stop using a impact driver on cable clamps

Spent 45 minutes on a drop ceiling cable run that should've been 15 - what's your worst time sink?

Appreciation post: the old 'bend and wiggle' trick still saves me time

Just realized how much new houses have changed the install game

Had a week where every single attic run had a raccoon nest in the way...

Spent 3 hours chasing a signal drop on a Wednesday job in Phoenix

The before and after on these new crimpers blew my mind

Bulk RG6 vs quad shield RG6 on a long run - I learned the hard way

Finally figured out why my crimps were failing after a year on the job

I was drilling holes the wrong way for 5 years until a homeowner called me out

Finished a tough attic run on a 95 degree day and it felt good

Had my worst day in 8 years on Tuesday. 3 homes in a row had dead drops with rotten ends.